


The Reunion of Death

by Confuzledsheep



Series: Death of the Necrosaints [2]
Category: The Locked Tomb Trilogy | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir
Genre: Afterlife, Banter, Fun River bubble shenanigans, Harrow the Ninth Spoilers (Locked Tomb Trilogy), Other, Post-Harrow the Ninth (Locked Tomb Trilogy), The River - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:41:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27231415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Confuzledsheep/pseuds/Confuzledsheep
Summary: Augustine has been dead for likely less than a second, but it seems not even death can help him escape from the curse of Mercymorn's wild hypothesizing.
Relationships: Augustine the First & Mercymorn the First (Locked Tomb Trilogy)
Series: Death of the Necrosaints [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1988140
Comments: 1
Kudos: 20





	The Reunion of Death

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna use Mercy as a vessel to spew my wild theories at you all in these coming fics and at the same time try and develop Mercy and Augustine's tension even further... 
> 
> Now I just gotta create characters for ALL the other lyctors...

"I told you so."

Augustine the First, the Emperor's hand and gestures, had only been dead for a fraction of a second. 

That being said, he did deserve Mercymorn's attempts at a scathing word. 

"Yes yes, you did. Your suspicion was warranted, most of your questions were answered, and you were right all along Beloved Mercy!" He sighed, pushing back his hair. 

He did fully expect to see the river when he opened his eyes, and was startled to see that he did not. 

They were in a large familiar hall- organic white architecture (modeled after the bones of ancient whales) arching around them, sunlight gleaming through massive windows- they were at Cannan house once more. 

"Who-"

"One of us- not us, but one of the others created this bubble upon the river- it appears our immortal souls are not easily absorbed by its currents upon our death," Mercymorn said, taking a step closer. She looked as old as she did upon her death, but her garb was that of her youth- low heels, a flowing dress of blending golds and pinks. "I have used some of my power to create a bubble  _ within  _ that bubble so we may talk."

"If you're trying to berate me it’s a lost cause- if you want me to grovel I'll  _ grovel darlin."  _ Augustine drawled. His attire was also that of his 'youth', Gray undershirt with a right red vest, charcoal pants, and maroon loafers. Dark greys and reds went well with his sickly platinum blonde. 

"Getting on your knees is unnecessary. I merely wanted to talk about the… revelation of the Progeny." She said, moving fully within Augustine's space. She had never been so bold as to draw so near to him in such a decent mood. 

"You seem awfully cheery. Were you that wet for the prospect of death?"

Mercymorn snorted a laugh- he hadn't heard that in  _ millennia.  _ "No, Augustine. It appears that upon a Lyctors death… their twin souls come unwound. We still bear the marks of our sins- thus the insolubility with the river- but we are no longer  _ alone. _ "

"Good god how did you figure that out so quickly."

She almost  _ beamed.  _ Almost- she caught herself before she could show the first ounce of true Joy she's felt since her soul met its eternal pause. "I saw an unexpected guest- but then created this bubble before you could see your own- apologies, I was probably the last person you wished to see upon death." 

Augustine… felt as though he should have had a response to that. To be honest, he would have been more concerned if it  _ wasn't  _ Mercymorn. She was a bitch, yes, but she was  _ far  _ more familiar than any other Lyctor. 

Which made this shift- perhaps regression?- in demeanor so… remarkable. She did put the burden of God's personal assistant upon herself in the world of the living, but she was built to do stuff like that. Would she have been a better leader than John? Yeah, Augustine was willing to bet so. Would she have been more hated than John? Absolutely. 

She did this to herself, but no one wanted her job. She tried to seek fulfillment by being the very definition of God's right hand- and in the process, grew to hate him. 

All Augustine did was fuck off after 6,000 years and then proceed to drink and gamble and fuck and fight his way across the galaxy. Not like that was any better or worse than what Mercymorn had been up to. 

"Well, uh. Glad we're not alone, but… the Progenitor."

"Yes. The Progenitor."

"God. The more I think about it the more I want to kick myself for not being suspicious."

"It's in the past, Augustine." She said, pushing back hair that shimmered in the sunlight of The First. 

"Who are you and what the hell have you done with Mercymorn."

"Well, Mercymorn is dead, so perhaps I am not truly Mercymorn." She said, crossing her arms over her chest. He had forgotten all about the draped necklines she used to wear and suddenly felt as though he should avert his eyes, despite the fact he had seen her in far more compromising positions. 

"That's too philosophical," Augustine said, leaning against the thick glass of the massive windows. Even the seas crashing hundreds of feet below them looked real. "I'll disregard your sudden turn for the better for now- we need to talk about God's kid."

"I thought the whelp had died the minute Wake blipped off the map. I guess it takes a lot to kill John's blood."

"I can't believe she carried it  _ herself… I _ mean, she had too, given the situation, but that's… quite an ordeal."

"Oh it absolutely is- the fact the child survived would be a miracle was if not John's. I'm amazed it retained the Eyes- one would think the eyes would be lost due to its recessive nature, but the fact it was not…"

"Well, keyed us into the Lyctorhood Lie, so I'm glad the kid ended up with them." 

Mercymorn paused, as though she had reached one of the grandest conclusions of her life. (Was it considered her life now that she was dead? Augustine would have to think about that.)

Her eyes shined oddly in the sun, they looked different, Augustine just couldn't place it- 

They were back. They were her original light green. 

"-Are you listening?"

"Hm?"

A scoff. That was more familiar. "Augustine, I was  _ saying  _ that… Wait, what was I-"

Those brilliant green eyes grew three times in size.

"The Stone. Only John's blood can unlock the tomb."

"...And?"

"And his blood- the Successor, ended up on the ninth house, where the tomb was located."

"Yes, it was."

"With a child I feel confident in considering a more than average necromancer."

That was Mercy speak for  _ absolutely fucking brilliant.  _

"Which entails-"

"The successor was Harrow's cavalier, yes, but there was obviously a tension or disconnect between them- at least on Harrow's end. The successor wanted to protect Harrow quite badly- a very strong resemblance to Cristabel in that sense. But besides that- say, Augustine, that Harrow, the brat of our sister, had a…  _ spat  _ with her necromancer."

Augustine wasn't following all that well, but he nodded. "Uh-huh."

"And… in the process, ends up with blood on her clothes. That Blood is arguably John's blood. Keep that in mind. One could roll back the stone with just that hint of blood- or, should Harrow convince her Cavalier to do it, have the cavalier roll back the stone and give Harrow the ability to bypass the wards, traps, and seals all the way to the inner sanctum of the tomb to where-"

"To where Alecto rests…"

" _ EXACTLY!  _ The Successor landing on the Ninth will become John's  _ nightmare."  _ Her eyes were gleaming, excitement now pulling at her face. "Which, now that we  _ know  _ we've been half-assing Lyctorhood, raises many, many more questions about Alecto-"

Augustine sighed, and decided to risk his very life. (Or well. Perhaps his soul.)

He placed a finger very gently upon Mercymorn's lip, hushing her with an exhausted sigh. "Can you theorize upon that later? Give a man freshly dead a break."

To his surprise, she took a deep breath, relaxing her shoulders. "I suppose we do have all of eternity to discuss this… I merely wanted to talk as soon as possible about these issues."

"You know we are no longer bound by the constraints of deadlines, right?"

"Well, yes, but that…"

"Will take some getting used too for you. Now, you said something about unexpected guests in this bubble?"

"I did, Augustine."

"Is Phyrra here?"

"Not from what I could see."

"Damn." Augustine pouted, placing his chin in his hand. "Guess we'll have to make do then."

"You know this is a bubble within a bubble, Augustine. We are  _ not  _ the only souls left floating atop the river." 

Augustine arched a brow. "Are you turning me down even when you no longer have a stick up your ass? Harsh." 

"Death didn't suddenly make me easy." You scoffed. 

"Oh, your girl is here too, isn't she?" Augustine smiled, malice pulling at the corner of his lip.

"Don't refer to Christabel in that manner ever again."

"Noted. But, if Christabel had returned, then Lord knows what kind of stunts Alfred has pulled in this… realm. I'm hesitant to call it Paradise."

"As much as I agreed to your statement of my bones resting peacefully next to yours, I don't think I could ever call somewhere where you reside with me as Paradise." Mercymorn sneered, turning to face the grand door at the end of the hall, heels clicking against the floors. 

Augustine followed behind her dutifully, as if her leaving him would cause his soul to collapse into the river, never to be seen again. 

Stopping at the door, Mercymorn grabbed hold of the fabric of his collar. 

"If my theory is correct, which it likely is, this will go without a hitch."

"And if it doesn't?"

"Then we'll find ourselves in a true hell- stuck together in the river for all eternity."

"What are the odds of that happening?"

"Less than 5%"

"... I'll take those odds." 

The closest thing one could get to a smile tugged at Mercymorn's lip, and she opened the door. 

White light shined around them for not much more than a blink- but when Augustine opened his eyes, he was quite relieved to see he wouldn't be spending eternity in the river with Mercymorn. 

Although he would admit he did feel a pang in his chest when her hands were removed from his collar. But he had all of eternity to contend with that. For now, he could afford to continue to hate her. 

**Author's Note:**

> That's all folks! I hope you keep an eye out for the next fic in this series! If you liked it, comments and Kudos are really appreciated! 
> 
> See y'all on the flipside!


End file.
